And if you say, “I and those deniers agree in denying what these people affirm,” you will be told, “Such-and-such groups likewise agree in denying what you affirm.”

Know that this line of argument can be addressed to anyone on earth, even the most extreme deniers among the Jahmiyyah, the Qarmatians, and the philosophers. They must, in one way or another, affirm something on the basis of transmitted teachings, since no group can deny everything established by such teachings, whether statements of fact or directives.

If someone says, “I affirm what transmitted teachings convey because I have come to know it through reason, not because those teachings convey it,” the same answer can be given concerning the affirmation of Allah’s being on high and His attributes. Another answer can also be given: anyone who acknowledges prophethood in any way must affirm, on the authority of the prophets’ statements, certain matters for which their statements alone constitute the proof, even if these concern matters of knowledge and politics. All these people must follow religious laws, whether outwardly, for the masses, or at the outset of their path.

Even if someone does not acknowledge prophethood in any way, he must act upon the statements of people other than prophets, such as kings, philosophers, and the like.

Indeed, human beings must understand the speech of their fellow humans. For human beings are social by nature and cannot independently secure their own welfare. They must therefore come together to cooperate in securing their welfare, and this cannot be accomplished without some means by which each can know what another intends.